Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Hetch Hetchy Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
SFPUC approves condition-assessment contracts for Hetch Hetchy pipelines and power facilities
Summary
Commissioners approved amendments and new awards to continue condition assessments for San Joaquin pipelines, Hetch Hetchy power facilities and tunnels/penstocks, and staff flagged urgent repairs (Moccasin rotors, transformer containment, aging transmission lines).
The commission approved three related items on Jan. 12, 2010 to advance condition assessments across Hetch Hetchy water and power infrastructure.
Scope and rationale: Steve Ritchie (assistant general manager for water) outlined the work: continue condition assessments of San Joaquin pipelines (to establish useful life and repair needs), extend power system condition-assessment contracts in Hetch Hetchy and proceed with a geotechnical/tunnel assessment contract (URS) for penstocks, tunnels and dams. Ritchie said the assessments are expected to identify capital needs and feed into near-term work programs.
Urgent findings: Margaret Hannaford, general manager of Hetch Hetchy Water and Power, told the commission the assessment work has already revealed pressing issues in generation assets. At Moccasin Powerhouse, rotors and stator components are aged and need significant repair; failures could cost the utility tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue. "The cost of a failure of those units would impact our revenues approximately by around $25,000,000," Hannaford said. Staff also cited needs for improved oil-spill containment around transformers, replacement of circuit breakers and relay protection systems, and rehabilitation or eventual replacement of transmission lines 3 and 4 (about 80 years old).
Approvals and next steps: Commissioners authorized the contract amendments and award to URS for a five‑year geotechnical and tunnel engineering services agreement. Staff said pipeline and power assessments will proceed in parallel with a view toward budgeting capital work in the upcoming budget cycle and placing targeted engineering and repair projects into project schedules.
Why it matters: Hetch Hetchy assets are critical to regional water delivery and city-owned power generation; condition assessments will inform prioritization and budgeting for rehabilitation projects that affect reliability and environmental risk management.
